


running to find the finish line

by tenyaiidascalves



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: A bit of TomoMitsu, Family Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Me just loving Mitsuru Tenma so much and writing a 6k fic for him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:41:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27358195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tenyaiidascalves/pseuds/tenyaiidascalves
Summary: “Mitsuru-” Tomoya’s hand reached out. Mitsuru slapped it away with his other hand, unable to process words because if he were to open his mouth, sobs and cries would be the only response. His amber eyes looked at the other’s, Mitsuru’s gaze full of hurt and anger. He couldn’t be there any longer - he didn’t belong there any longer.He knew it was too good to be true, that there was something else big going for him in his life. In the end he was a fool that ran, so that’s what he did - he ran.-----------Character study for Mitsuru Tenma the dash dash boy whom I love with all my heart....Mitsuru reflecting on his decision to become an idol when everyone expected him to become something else, he starts to believe that maybe being an idol was a waste of his potential.
Relationships: Mashiro Tomoya/Tenma Mitsuru
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	running to find the finish line

**Author's Note:**

> hi i am just lovemailing mitsuru by writing a character study fic w a slight bit of tomomitsu dont mind me i love a boy so god damn much so fucking much so FUCKING much dont even LOOK at me 
> 
> btw i started writing this in feb 2020 lmfaoooo better late than never ig

Everyone had their own way to deal with their problems.Some people took a second to recollect themselves, others might eat their feelings away, and there was Mitsuru Tenma who  _ ran _ . Ever since he was young his body urged him to move. Running exercised his body, making use of all his joints and muscles. The wind in his hair was refreshing and the steady breathing calmed his nerves. It was strange that people found the phrase “running away from your problems” was some sort of bad thing. For Mitsuru’s problems he liked to run in order to clear his mind, to focus on something he enjoyed. Talking about his woes and worries wasn’t something he normally did. His parents were busy and his older siblings didn’t want to hear their younger brother’s problems so… running! 

Maybe it was because he used running as a way to calm himself and forget his problems that made him excell. He wasn’t clever when it came to school work, and he definitely had the smallest attention span of all of his class. But boy! Was Mitsuru an excellent runner and he was super proud of that. 

Mitsuru had been with the Track and Field club that day, winding down after a good race with the others. He had offered to get refreshments for everyone, still full of energy while the others were exhausted. Going around the corner with cans of water and juice in his arm, he overheard a small conversation.    
  
“That kid’s got energy, I’m real jealous~” He heard the voice of his Mike-chan-senpai. 

“Oh yes, Mitsuru-chan really puts us elders to shame don’t you think? Not that I’m really trying to pull a ligament or anything.” Oh, that was Arashi-chan-senpai talking with him! 

“You know I was ready to go full speed with him. If he keeps at his pace and keeps improving, he really could be an Olympic runner! Makes you wonder why he came to be an idol, haha!” 

Mitsuru froze at that. He had been told before that he should’ve gone into preparing to be an athlete rather than an idol. While his parents were supportive, they were dubious at the fact that Mitsuru was going over his head and pursuing something that wouldn’t ultimately work out. Even his older brother and sister had mentioned it to him. 

_ Being an idol is cool, but you have real potential to be a runner.  _

_ You’ve got way more stamina than I ever did at your age! Wouldn’t it be cool if you can run as an athlete? _

_ Yumenosaki? In the idol course? Wouldn’t it be better if you went to the athlete academy you were offered? _

Mitsuru  _ had _ thought about it. People always praised him for how fast he ran, so it didn’t matter what kind of grades he got or how much of an idiot he seemed. He received good times so people looked away from his mistakes! If he were to become an Olympic runner would they keep doing that? 

It wasn’t like being an Olympic runner was a bad thing but… deep down Mitsuru didn’t want that. Yes, he loved running and he was damn good at it, but the realization came to him in his last year of middle school. 

Being a runner is cool and all, but if you lose you get real scolded! On top of that if he trained to be a professional runner, that meant that he couldn’t do anything else that was fun! He’d be told what to eat and what he could and couldn’t do. If he had become a runner, then his entire being would  _ just _ be running. No… he wanted something more. 

He wanted to make others happy, he wanted to be cute, Mitsuru wanted to be an idol! People can look at him and see that he was doing his best, singing and dancing and being cute! People would be happy and the shine from their penlights would illuminate his heart. He only saw an idol performing at his local mall once during his third year of middle school, but even that impression had stuck with him since then. The way his heart beat to the rhythm of the music and the way that he wanted to get up and dance - that was an experience like no other. 

Mitsuru wasn’t going to say his thoughts on being a professional runner out loud, but he wasn’t blind to the nature of athletes. You work your whole butt off to get good at one sport, and on top of that you have to compete with so many people who were doing the same thing. It was unfortunate but if you didn’t excel you would be shunned. You’d be a disappointment to not only your team and family, but to the entire nation too. That kind of pressure was  _ not _ something Mitsuru would look forward to. No matter how fast he ran, there could always be someone who was faster than him. And that was okay! It only meant Mitsuru needed to work harder but with so many disappointing eyes on him…. It wasn’t a good feeling. 

He didn’t like those eyes. He’d seen it before plenty of times - sometimes he saw it in his own Ra*bits’s eyes. Mitsuru very much liked to avoid any sort of trouble, even though he seemed to be a magnet for it. 

Taking a deep breath, Mitsuru pushed out a smile and came back to his senpais with refreshments in tow. He ignored that small feeling of hurt in his heart. 

* * *

The stinging feeling stayed within Mitsuru’s heart throughout the day. It was tough for Mitsuru to express any sort of discomfort so he had left it there for another time. A bad habit really… where he would allow the discomfort fester within until it was too strong to ignore. Still, he couldn’t allow others to really see the trouble in his heart. He was already a “bad” boy, so bringing up anything else would be a burden for the others. 

Even though his grades were slowly getting better, his attention-span was far limited. He had spaced out in class, his knee bouncing anxiously. The sound of his shoe’s heel against the pavement made a clicking rhythm that those near him could hear.

“Tenma-kun.” A low voice whispered to his left. With his mind lost in the clouds, Mitsuru did not reply. 

“Tenma-kun!” The voice got a tiny bit louder but still in a hushed whisper. The sound of shoe on pavement echoed in Mitsuru’s ear. 

“TENMA-KUN!” The hiss was loud, but still directed towards the boy who finally stopped, looking over to Tsukasa who had been the one attempting to gain Mitsuru’s attention. 

“Ah~ Hey Tsukasa-chan what’s up-” Before Mitsuru could smile at the student the other had given a stern, annoyed look.

"It would be most beneficial if you stopped making that noise with your foot. Lecture is in session and I cannot hear Sensei with you making a distracting noise." Tsukasa had explained with a scolding tone. Others had looked over their shoulder to see the interaction which caused Mitsuru’s face to flush red with embarrassment. He meekly nodded before consciously stopping his leg. 

He couldn’t focus on the lecture anyway, that was the nature of Mitsuru’s mind. It was tough focusing on another person’s words when really he needed to have things in a physical way. Perhaps if he were to associate his studies with physical activity it would benefit him. After all, every student is different - some don’t even attend class! They learned in their own way that wasn’t listening to lectures… But even then they were geniuses huh? 

People like the Oddballs were smart on their own without listening to lectures. Mitsuru was not as gifted as they were, so thinking that he could escape class like them was a harsh figment of his imagination. 

If only he was like Tsukasa-chan, smart and cool, being able to balance both idol work and studying. Honestly everyone in his classroom had stronger merits than him. It wasn’t unlikely that people would look to Mitsuru as the reference point to what  _ failure _ looked like. No, Mitsuru was certain that’s how it was in his classroom. It’s been that way since he was in middle school. 

_ Oh, Tenma-kun is so dumb why is he still here in class if he doesn’t pay attention?  _

_ It’s cause he’s the fastest runner the school’s ever seen! If the coaches weren’t fawning over him he’d probably be expelled already! _

Those were words spoken under their breaths, just loud enough for Mitsuru to have overheard at the time. There were reasons why Mitsuru didn’t have friends in middle school, no one really wanted to be associated with the dumb kid who ran fast. Perhaps they thought he would be contagious, or perhaps he was too much to handle. Mitsuru had disregarded those thoughts by running. It was running that kept him sane but lately even running had left a toll in his heart. 

The teacher had passed out their most recent math exam, which Mitsuru took with a heavy heart. He was doing better than before, but this was far from a passing grade. Math was one of those subjects that had him jumbled up, numbers were never his forte. It wasn’t really something he could practice physically - it truly required focus to sit down and work out formulas. That sort of patience was beyond Mitsuru. 

Looking at his test scores only affirmed what Tsukasa had inferred earlier - that he actively didn’t listen to lectures and was nothing but a distraction on others. The thought of being a nuisance made Mitsuru extremely upset, though he did his best to not show it.

It wasn’t like he could get his emotions hidden from someone like Sora-chan; however, who had gotten up from his seat during their break time to come over to Mitsuru. 

“Hey hey Mitsu-chan~ Your color is looking pretty blue and gray! Was it a bad grade?” Sora looked over to Mitsuru’s test that had a big 67 written in red and circled. 

“Uhhh, yeah~” Mitsuru chuckled gently before looking at the other. “I didn’t really study hard for the exam, honestly all the new formulas were really tough! I couldn’t understand any of it!” He laughed, trying to play off his incompetence as a joke. 

Sora hummed thoughtfully. “That’s okay~ Try harder next time~ Sora will cheer you on!” He added, balling his fists and giving Mitsuru a cheerful smile. For some reason, Mitsuru didn’t feel as comforted by the good-will like he hoped. 

* * *

Mitsuru had made a point to get to their Ra*bits meeting early. The pain in his heart was starting to drag him down, and there was no way he could mess up anymore than he did today. He didn’t like how Mike-chan-senpai talked about his running abilities and why he was being an idol instead of an athlete, and then on top of that he had gotten scolded by Tsukasa-chan and received a bad test grade. If anything else were to happen he might run off again. He didn’t want anything else bad to happen today, even though his heart was pulling and tugging. 

He even made a point to double check his phone for the messages and calendar reminders. Mitsuru noted the correct room number and time and ran off once he grabbed his rehearsal bag from his locker at the front of the school. Mitsuru made sure there was extra time for him to get to the rehearsal room, not allowing himself to feel any negativity from here on out! If he was with his Ra*bits he could be the happiest he wanted! 

Sliding into the rehearsal room, Mitsuru couldn’t help but hum at the thought of being praised by the others for being the first person there. He was excited to get going with their rehearsal, happy to learn new dance moves and perfect the previous day’s choreo with his friends. Being an idol was a lot of work but his friends had made it all the better. 

He sat on the ground and started to stretch his limbs, knowing from track and field how important it was. Even if he had an exuberant amount of energy, not stretching could lead to bigger issues and he no longer wanted to be seen as the grievance of the group. 

The rehearsal room’s door swung open, Niichan poking his head inside alongside the other two members of their group. 

“Oh! Mitsuru-chin you’re here early!” Niichan looked at him with surprise before the other two came in. 

“Wow, did you get the wrong time or something? Really Mitsuru?” Tomoya sighed, crossing his arms. 

Mitsuru got up from his sitting position. “No! I got here early! I swear!” 

“Yeah yeah. You sure you didn’t just forget the time so you came here and waited? Or were you running away from someone because of your bad grade?” Tomoya added with a scolding frown. 

“Wah- how’dya know?” Mitsuru’s face dropped. The weight in his heart was back, and while he knew that this might’ve been something to talk about with Niichan, he really didn’t want the other two first years to know about this. Hajime spoke up gently, walking over to Mitsuru. 

“I was retrieving items from the Tea Club and ran into Tsukasa-kun. He told me he was concerned about the way you were behaving in class, Mitsuru-kun.” Hajime softly explained, his voice delicate and filled with concern.

Mitsuru’s eyes darted from each of his unit mate’s, the look of disappointment heightening Mitsuru's vision. Niichan looked concerned, his brows furrowed at the mention of a behavior issue. Tomo-chan on the other hand had an annoyed look on his face, similar to how Tsukasa-chan looked during class. 

“Come on Mitsuru! You can’t keep causing trouble for others you know? It’ll look bad for the rest of us who are working hard.” Tomoya sighed softly. “Really, Idiot Mitsuru…”

There was something about the way everyone was looking at him that made his heart hurt. The disappointed faces were the kind that Mitsuru was purposely trying to avoid. Instead he was face to face with eyes that looked like they were pitying him. 

_ Idiot Mitsuru!  _

The name echoed in his head, his heart began squeezing so hard it felt like it was going to burst. The weights tugged and pulled and Mitsuru’s chest started to feel restrained. It was almost like everything he worked to build was being shattered into a million pieces. Was it too late for him to stop being the “bad boy” of the group? Was he always going to be labelled as the problematic one of the bunch? Surely the other students in his class knew that he was nothing but an idiot, and even though Tomoya had called him one many times for some reason now it…. It felt like a knife to the chest. 

The one place where he thought was his happe space seemed to have been just his delusion. It wasn’t something he could escape from, was it? He was just going to be Idiot Mitsuru forever. 

“Um, Mitsuru-kun?” Hajime’s voice brought Mitsuru’s head up. There was a gasp among the three of them as Mitsuru had hot tears rolling down his face silently. They were large and rolling down his cheeks quickly, almost like a working pike that had succumbed to a leak. The way Mitsuru grabbed onto his chest looked like he was in pure agony, the way his knuckles turned white from the intensity of how hard he clenched. 

“Mitsuru-” Tomoya’s hand reached out. Mitsuru slapped it away with his other hand, unable to process words because if he were to open his mouth, sobs and cries would be the only response. His amber eyes looked at the other’s, Mitsuru’s gaze full of hurt and anger. He couldn’t be there any longer - he didn’t  _ belong _ there any longer. 

He knew it was too good to be true, that there was something else big going for him in his life. In the end he was a fool that ran, so that’s what he did - he ran. 

* * *

The sounds of the others calling out for him were drained out in no time. Mitsuru was  _ fast _ , no one could doubt that. The issue was that Mitsuru didn’t have anywhere in mind when he ran out of the rehearsal room. All he knew was that if he stayed in the room any longer he was going to break down in tears in front of the people he cared about. While he knew that the others would do their best to comfort him, Mitsuru felt like doing so would only confirm the fact he was nothing but a burden for the others. It was something he actively was trying to prevent, but it seemed that no matter what happened he would be the one others found to be the weakest link. 

It infuriated him, saddened him - made him realize that maybe the purpose he was born for was really to just run. Run for others, run until you can't breathe anymore, only then you could be praised. 

Mitsuru headed up the stairs and towards the rooftop, knowing that no one would be there to find him since he usually went to the roof to sunbathe and no one had ever found him before. His breathing became uneven as he worked hard to silence his own sobs while trying to take in air. He knew the moment that any of them were to see his face the load in his heart would finally burst. The weight that had been pushing on his heart had finally trampled what little composure he had. Once he pushed the doors open to the rooftop Mitsuru started to wail. Hot tears trailed down his face as he cried, his chest was burning with pain as he moved into the middle of the rooftop, falling to his knees.    
  
He didn’t care if anyone could hear, there was no way Mitsuru could hold in the tears any longer. The tears flowed in a means to relieve himself, but as they cascaded down his face it almost seemed like they were never-ending, revealing an infinite amount of sorrow in the boy’s heart. How long had Mitsuru been keeping these feelings inside his chest? There must’ve been many nights where he had lied awake in bed thinking about how  _ awful _ he was - how  _ pathetic _ and how much of a  _ burden _ he was. 

Mitsuru had never been the kind of person to reveal his feelings about himself, always bouncing insults away to move on to better things to do and talk about. Maybe if he had talked it out to someone he trusted he wouldn’t have had such an explosion of emotions that gripped at his chest and twisted his heart. Ah but then he might’ve just been burdening the person with his feelings! Mitsuru was so confused…. He didn’t know what to do, all he could do was cry.    
How pathetic…. He must really look childish, crying so loudly and wailing like an infant without their mother. Mitsuru couldn’t remember the last time he cried like this… and it was probably because he had everything bottled up for so long that it erupted into such an ugly sob. Despite all the sadness that he was letting out, he was at least grateful that there wasn’t anyone up here to see how terrible he looked- 

“Mitsuru!” The brunet let out a shrief as he heard the familiar voice rang out, Mitsuru nearly jumping out of his skin. He looked over to see Tomoya, hair out of place and the boy panting hard like he too had run a marathon. Mitsuru thought for a moment that oh, that was nice that someone came to check up on him but he remembered that the reason he came up to the roof was because of Tomoya’s hurtful comments, which made him realize he did  _ not _ want Tomoya near him at all.    
  
“Tomo-chan I don’t want to see you right now! Go away!” Mitsuru quickly turned away, hiding his face as the other gasped, startled by the other’s words. It only made Tomoya confused, taking a few careful steps closer.    
  
“That’s real funny…. Normally I’m the one trying to push you away. Mitsuru, tell me what’s wrong? What happened?” Tomoya’s bush brows knitted in concern, though he didn’t take any more steps in case it would startle Mitsuru. The other boy could only bite his bottom lip and sniff loudly, rubbing his face with his arm. He really didn’t want to talk to Tomoya about this…. Not when he was still trying to calm himself down and keep himself from revealing more than the other bargained for. Who wanted to hear silly whining and complaints? How draining was it going to be to listen to someone’s self-wallow? Mitsuru didn’t want to be seen as someone who was fragile, ready to break at a moment’s notice because of something that hurt his feelings. He wanted to be tougher than this, someone who didn’t have to be sad - Mitsuru wanted to always stay sunny with a smile on his face! Because if someone else was feeling down, he’d be able to cheer them right up! That was the point of being an idol right? To make others happy and smile and feel better and-    
  
“Mitsuru!” Tomoya snapped, Mitsuru jumping before hunching forward. He felt his legs shake, the desperation to run growing stronger by each second. 

Taking a deep breath, Mitsuru wiped off more of his tears before turning around to face Tomoya. He offered the other a forced smile while playfully rubbing his cheek. “W-What?” He asked, shaking his head. “I just want to be left alone yanno? It’s fine I’m just going to sit here for a while and then I’ll be back. I’m not going to skip rehearsal, I promise!” Mitsuru added, though it only made Tomoya’s face more scornful.    
  
“I’m not going to leave you alone when you ran out of the room crying!” Tomoya took a deep sigh after, softening a bit as he walked closer. “I’m sorry…. It’s what I said right? I didn’t mean it, you’re not an idiot Mitsuru.” Before Tomoya could finish, Mitsuru felt his heart ache again, the tears coming back as he turned away.   
  
“No you’re right! I am an idiot! I’m the idiot Mitsuru who can’t sit still or can’t properly look at his phone, or be good at math or be a good idol! I’m just… I’m just...I-” Mitsuru held his arms tight, leaning forward as he cried again, shaking his head as tears fell on the cement below. 

“I don’t think I belong here...” Mitsuru managed, his voice soft and shaking but enough for Tomoya to hear him clearly. The other first year stared at Mitsuru, mouth agape as he thought of something to say but was unable to find proper words. Closing his mouth he gently walked closer to Mitsuru and moved to sit down next to him.    
  
Mitsuru didn’t move from his spot, sniffing loudly as he shifted to sit on his butt, holding his knees as he puffed up his cheeks and stared at the ground as tears continued to roll down his cheeks. Tomoya moved to gently put a hand on the other’s shoulder, rubbing it soothingly before offering a sad smile.    
  
“I’m sorry Mitsuru…. I didn’t know you were feeling like that. I shouldn’t have added fuel to the fire, I really just made it worse. Forgive me?” Tomoya asked, patting the other’s shoulder before Mitsuru sniffed again, nodding his head.    
  
“It’s not your fault… you were only saying the truth. It’s true, I really am an idiot. I’m not good at studying and I’m a  _ bad boy _ .” Mitsuru sulked, burying his face into his knees. “All I’m good at is running… I shouldn’t have enrolled here, I should’ve just gone to the athletic school like everyone wanted me to.” It hurt to think about that - Mitsuru not being in Yumenosaki Academy and making the friends he currently has. All of his fond memories of performing with Ra*bits and getting to learn so much from his senpais. It all started to make Mitsuru feel guilty for being able to do all these glamorous things when he really didn’t belong here. Even though he really, really loved being an idol, he was just going to drag the rest down right? He was the one that got in trouble for buying an extra uniform and draining their funds. Mitsuru really was a bad boy wasn’t he? When he tried really hard not to be it seemed as that’s all he was meant for.    
  
“If I just quit then-” Mitsuru started but Tomoya had quickly snatched Mitsuru’s hands and moved to kneel in front of him.    
  
“Hey! Don’t say that alright? I’m sorry I wasn’t helpful…. I’m sorry I didn’t notice what I was saying was hurting you, but Ra*bits isn’t going to ever be the same without you! You’re Ra*bits superstar!” Tomoya exclaimed, squeezing the other’s hands tightly.    
  
“... I really don’t feel like a superstar….” Mitsuru replied softly, sulking a bit before Tomoya gave a frown and another squeeze to his hands. 

“None of us are perfect. I’m nowhere near perfect, and  _ I’m  _ the one that feels like I’m dragging everyone down! But…. even if we all feel like that, we’re going to stick together because we'll help each other get stronger right? And I’m not saying this because I want you to stay in the unit, I’m saying this because we’re friends. And I think… as your friend…. Frowns don’t really suit you…” Tomoya’s face flushed a bit as he kept his eyes on Mitsuru who only stared back in awe.    
  
Tomoya let go of Mitsuru’s hand but stayed sitting on his knees in front of the other. His face only grew more red as he started to look at everywhere else but Mitsuru’s face. “You’re not bad.... You’re not dragging us down. Whenever you smile it’s disgustingly infectious. You make me smile even when I’m not feeling at my best. You have so much energy I’m really envious of you know? But it makes me want to work harder to keep up with you. So if you say you’re going to leave the school, I’ll actually be really mad at you okay? So don’t.” Tomoya added, though the threat was anything but vicious. It was a lot more sad, and Mitsuru couldn’t help but feel his heart race. 

It wasn’t that scary heart beating he had earlier when he felt like his chest was going to burst, but this felt like something inside him was warming his chest and melting his heart. Mitsuru only flushed himself, looking down at his feet before taking a deep breath. 

“Earlier today I heard Mike-chan-senpai and Arashi-chan-senpai talk about me… They were talking about how fast of a runner I was and that they didn’t understand why I was an idol when I have the times to be a real athlete.” Mitsuru explained gently, feeling his lips wobble. 

“I know I’m good at running - I love it! But… I wanted to be an idol because runners will come and go. I want to be able to sing and make people happy, and they’ll keep listening to us and be happy forever and ever! But when I heard that… it only reminded me how my family thought enrolling into Yumenosaki was a waste of time. Even now they still want me to go to that athletic academy in Tokyo.” Mitsuru added, sulking over the fact. It hurt not having his family’s full support, thinking that this was just some sort of phase in his life. Knowing that they think Mitsuru was wasting his talent and life only made him feel bad. 

Tomoya listened, nodding his head and not saying anything as Mitsuru continued to let out whatever was on his mind that was weighing on his mood and feelings. He didn’t really know that Mitsuru’s family had wanted him to go into an athletic school, but thinking back on how fast of a runner Mitsuru was and how many times he’s broken, it made a lot of sense. 

“It made me feel all icky inside.... And I started to feel bad. I went to class and I guess I was bouncing and tapping my foot and then Tsukasa-chan got mad at me. I felt bad about that because I’m not good at focusing in class and then we got our test scores back… And then I just felt worse.” Mitsuru sniffed again before he felt tears well up again.    
  
“So I said ‘it’s okay Mitsuru!! Don’t think about it! How about going to practice early and surprising everyone, and then you’ll get praised~’ At least that’s what I thought…” Mitsuru brooded, feeling his chest ache a bit again. “But when everyone came to practice I just got scolded. It hurt so much and after everything that happened today I just couldn’t be there anymore. I had to run yanno? I’m sorry for leaving like that…” Mitsuru sniffed again and wiped his eyes with the palm of his hands. 

Tomoya only moved to sit on his butt, crossing his legs in front of Mitsuru. He offered a sad smile, shaking his head. 

“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called you an idiot. I’m really sorry all of that happened and we didn’t do anything to help. Some friends we are, right? But you can always come to us if you’re not feeling okay. I promise that you can always come to me to talk and let off some steam. It’s okay to tell us if you’re having a bad day.” Tomoya added before taking the other’s hand and patting it.    
  
Mitsuru offered a soft smile back, straightening up again before he rubbed the back of his head with a hand. He nodded his head gently, a small blush spreading across his face.    
  
“Thanks Tomo-chan~ I’ll do my best. I’m not really good at um, telling people my problems....but I’ll do my best so you don’t have to worry.” Tomoya seemed to have been happy with that response, moving to get off the floor and brushing himself off.    
  
“Great. If you’re still up for it, let’s get to practice now. I’m sure Niichan and Hajime are a bit worried.” Tomoya offered the other a hand, Mitsuru beaming and taking a hold of it before tugging Tomoya back down.    
  
“Hehe~ Sounds good but can we stay here for a second? I feel all warm and fuzzy inside and I just want to lie down for a sec~” Mitsuru grinned, Tomoya only flushing in response.    
  
“Warm? It’s kind of cold up here since it’s a bit windy!” He exclaimed, looking around at the sky. The sun was behind some clouds, so that warm fuzzy feeling Mitsuru had wasn’t the sunbathing right? Mitsuru only pulled Tomoya down onto the ground, the brunet lying on his back as he beamed happily.    
  
Seeing the other smile, Tomoya let out a soft sigh before moving to lie down next to Mitsuru as well, putting one hand to his side but kept his grip on Mitsuru’s hand with his other. “Only for a bit… then we should go back to practice. We only have the rehearsal room for two hours you know?” Tomoya added, though he made no move to rush the other.    
  
Shifting a bit, Tomoya made himself comfy as he held onto the other’s hand, looking over to see Mitsuru smiling with his eyes closed. A smile really did suit the brunet better than anything else, and in return that made Tomoya smile as well. He closed his eyes a bit, realizing that he also felt a very warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest. 

* * *

  
  


After the two of them returned to the rehearsal room, the entire unit had a group hug with each other. Mitsuru had been honest about his feelings, finally being able to tell the others his troubles even though he felt guilty about it. Nazuna had been the most understanding, telling the first year that the more he bottles his feelings the more pain he’ll feel when it spills over. The blond had expressed his own hardships about himself with Valkyrie, and how he regretted not voicing his opinions and feelings on certain matters that eventually led to their breaking point. 

Hajime had held onto Mitsuru’s hands and expressed his love and care to Mitsuru, volunteering a friendly ear to him if he ever needed one. Or, if Mitsuru just needed a moment’s peace, Hajime would brew him the best kind of calming tea for relaxation and stress reduction with the best types of pastries to pair with. 

Tomoya didn’t say much after, already saying his share of words, but it didn’t stop him from squeezing Mitsuru’s hand when the others weren’t looking. 

His heart that was broken after so much pressure had been repaired and healed to be stronger than ever. Mitsuru couldn’t stop himself from physically showing his affection with hugs and cheek rubs through the rest of their practice. 

To Mitsuru, he threw away the thought of ever regretting his decision to enroll into Yumenosaki. Because while he knew he wasn’t the best when it came to academics, or paying attention, Mitsuru was happy to be an idol. Being on stage gave him a light feeling that was too euphoric, something that he could rival with the feeling of running during a race. But what really made everything tie together was his Ra*bits unit mates. It was a bit cheesy to think about, but Mitsuru did feel as though they were all meant to be together for forever. He hadn’t just made friends, but he felt as though he found himself a family that loved and supported him.    
  
A week later Mitsuru had invited the members of Ra*bits to one of his meets. The track and field club had decided on a race to promote some brands that wanted to show off their products and sponsor some of the units involved. It was mostly thanks to Mike-chan-senpai finding some connections to help out the units that needed to pull in money, and of course Mitsuru was the main attraction for these athletic brands. 

To show off idols as being sporty and athletic as well as graceful and entertaining, it was a good type of collaboration though not all the members of the track and field club had chosen to participate. Mitsuru found it to be a great way to get some more money for Ra*bits activity funds, because if he could show off how cool he was to the sponsors, they’ll want to sponsor his unit more! 

The field was bustling with Yumenosaki students as well as business suited executives who were representing different types of brands like a sports drink that aided those who were physically active in an athletic and idol-like way. There was also a brand of athletic footwear that was advertising itself as the perfect pair of practice shoes for idols. 

The members of Ra*bits were near the bleachers, all holding little fans that had Mitsuru’s name written out. While Nazuna went to talk to some of the brand ambassadors, Tomoya and Hajime were both looking out for Mitsuru who got ready at the starting line. 

“Good luck, Mitsuru-kun~!” Hajime called out, his small voice barely making it over but Mitsuru was able to see the blue-haired boy waving at him. Mitsuru grinned back and started waving with both hands, jumping up and down as he got excited. He had already stretched, but he was feeling a bit antsy and bouncing on his heels. It was just a friendly race and since the most important aspect of the meet was the brands and sponsorships, not everyone was going to pay attention to the actual race. Still, there was some sort of nervousness inside Mitsuru that he hadn’t felt before. Maybe it was because this race was something that married both his love of running and his desire to be a proper idol. If brands were to see him excel, they might want to give his unit some free goodies, and that was always great to be noticed! So maybe that’s why he was a bit nervous, because to Mitsuru there was a lot riding on this race.    
  
Taking a deep breath, Mitsuru calmed himself before turning to see Nazuna joining the other first years, waving at him.    
  
“Mitsuru-chin~ Niichan’s cheering you on! Ei ei oh~!” He called out, beaming brightly as Tomoya waved his fan as well.    
  
“Run Mitsuru, run~!” Tomoya called out as well before Mitsuru waved back again. He got himself ready at the starting line, moving to focus on the race now. When Mike-chan-senpai threw the flag down, Mitsuru immediately felt as light as a feather, leaping forward and began running down the track.    
  
All the thoughts came back to him, reminding him that he was someone that was born to run. The feeling was automatic and gave him joy unlike any other, but then the feeling started to feel one-sided again. 

  
  
_ You really could be an Olympic runner if you wanted to. How come you won’t try for that? _

It sounded like his mom asking him the question, but now Mitsuru was able to shake away the thought as he kept running. 

_ Don’t you think you’re wasting your full potential? You could be the best runner! _

It sounded like his older brother that time, but Mitsuru kept running. He knew that he could be the best runner in the world if he had the resources and teachings, but that’s not what Mitsuru  _ wanted _ for himself. His love and passion for running would always be there, but singing and dancing on stage and bringing happiness to others was so much more fun!    
  
Running and thinking of other things was somewhat of a bad habit, since Mitsuru had no idea where he was in the race right now. He had subconsciously followed the familiar track without realizing that he was running the fastest he’s ever really ran. All the brand ambassadors had their eyes on him as he gained an enormous gap between himself and the other participants. 

The feeling of his legs carrying him to where he wanted was exhilarating, but when Mitsuru saw his fellow Ra*bits members crowd towards the finish line, Mitsuru knew exactly what his end goal was going to be for all of this. 

He was going to be the bestest idol in the whole world with the bestest idol group ever! He was going to be Ra*bits Mitsuru Tenma!    
  
As Mitsuru sprinted towards the others, his amber eyes brightly gleaming, a man in a business suit began talking to another. 

“Who’s that child who’s running lightning fast?” He asked the other. Tomoya only beamed, he and his fellow Ra*bits members feeling the excitement well up in their chest as they cheered on their unit mate.    
  
“That’s Ra*bits’s superstar! Mitsuru Tenma!” Tomoya called out, raising his arms up to Mitsuru. As the brunet got closer, he took a flying leap a few meters before the finish line, jumping straight into his unit’s arms.    
  
Of course they all tumbled back, Mitsuru knocking into all of them, but none of them seemed to have been hurt as they all began laughing. The brunet couldn’t help but nuzzle into whoever’s chest he was lying on, which happened to have been Tomoya. Even he couldn’t scold the other when everyone was laughing and praising Mitsuru.    
  
The rest of the participants had made their way to the finish line, but Mitsuru stayed on the ground with the rest of Ra*bits, happy tears coming from his eyes as he hugged them all tightly. He didn’t have any regrets, nor would he ever think about leaving the school ever again. If there were anyone who could make him shine as bright as he did now, it was the idols he that shared the stage with. He felt it in his heart that no matter what hardships they’d have to face in the idol world, they’d all be able to do it together as a family. 

There was always going to be something - or someone - to run to, and Mitsuru was going to forever be running towards what made him happy. He would always find past the finish line the rabbits that he loved with all of heart, and could never part from. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
